Defeated presidential aspirant Senator Grace Poe and her running mate Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero yesterday urged the public to rally behind Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and give him a chance to serve the country to prove he is worthy of the peoples’ mandate.
In a press conference held at the Nationalist Peoples Coalition (NPC) headquarters in Quezon City Monday night, Poe said the people should unite and allow the tough mayor a chance to work and institute the much-needed reforms in the country.
Poe said she also doubts Duterte would close down Congress as he had earlier threatened, and promised that as a senator, she would work with Duterte in “continuing our advocacies that would truly be felt by our countrymen.”
“We need to do our respective jobs and I don’t see any reason for him to do that. And for me, he now has a new mandate. Let’s give him a chance,” Poe told reporters in Filipino.
“But of course, we will continue to fight for this system of democracy to prevail, so that our people’s voice would be heard through the Senate,” she said.
“The Senate is an independent body that we need to strengthen. And we as senators should serve as a watchdog of the government to ensure that all departments are working properly because the job of the Senate is to be an oversight body,” she said.
Escudero also echoed the call of his running mate, saying the incoming government under Duterte’s lead should be given a chance.
“We should respect and accept the decision of the people. Maybe the clamor during the campaign is different from the actual performance of the incoming official,” Escudero said in an interview.
“What is important is for the country to be healed, to be united over one leader, whether we voted for him or not, whoever the leader would be,” the senator said.
He also said the public should stop bickering over their differences and respect the position they now hold.